Revolving platforms system for household appliances

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a system of rotating platforms for household appliances adaptable to various types of enclosures. The system allows easy access and manipulation without any obstruction to all the objects stored in the enclosure, due to a spin effect of the plates or platforms achieved by a radial impulse applied at its periphery by a drive power source supplemented with an arrangement of removable static shelves by means which are connected with mounting mechanisms present in the walls of the recite, in such a position that manages to take advantage of the internal space of the enclosure that is not occupied by the cylindrical volume of the platform system and functions as a passive mechanism of security, support and balance for the objects stored in the enclosure and that are supported by the platform.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system of plates or platforms which are placed on an shaft and act synergistically in a household appliance preferably in refrigerators, ovens, roasters, freezers, wine cavas, etc.; by its characteristics it is possible to turn the plates or platforms, allowing closeness with those objects that are in the rear of the same apparatus, particularly useful when the apparatus is used by people who can not carry on their hands some items, such as sick people or people with disabilities. The system is driven by mechanical means, and consequently it is an invention of this area of knowledge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

At present there are several containers that are mostly designed for people with conventional psychomotor abilities, which integrate plates and/or platforms inside to obtain various levels of storage within the same container, thus increasing usable space. These types of containers can be classified into two main groups:

A) Containers with fixed platforms

B) Containers with removable platforms

The inner space of either of the two is defined by a housing with horizontal platforms in horizontal position that generate the storage levels where a variety of objects are placed on them to allow to cool, to heat or to induce a process of uniform way to all of them; regularly the platforms rest on conventional protuberances, guides, rails, tracks, which allow horizontal coupling in the body of the container and that consequently supports the plates or platforms. Some patents that are in the state of the art with this type of technology are:

U.S. Pat. No. 2,611,675 which includes a storage device comprising a cross-section of a channel and provided at opposite ends of apertures or notches to support at least some flat elements in the manner of a plate or platform; furthermore, it relates to a platform arrangement for refrigerators and other household appliances, wherein the platforms comprise detachable sections, individually detachable to attend to food storage problems without interfering with the support of the platforms belonging to the interior of the container. Being all the platforms of the same characteristics so that they can be interchanged, since the supports are compatible for any one of them; the confined space at each of the levels is defined by the surface of the platform, when that surface is used the access to the objects deposited at the bottom of said platform is made difficult by the height of the upper platform and by the depth of the container, particularly when there are objects in front on the platform within the container; therefore, to remove the referred objects should be removed from the front those representing the obstruction

In some devices, there are mechanisms that provide mobility to platforms such as those where the walls of the container have telescopic rails, rails to slide the platforms or in a more thoughtful case, those that have a central shaft where they turn the platforms freely, and those where sophisticated mechanisms to mobilize them are provided, such as motors, arms, notches protruding from the same apparatus; as presented in the utility model patent MX3037 which refers to a refrigerator of rotating platforms, comprised by a rotation shaft in the length of which is arranged at least one platform concentric with respect to said shaft, and which have a cylindrical fastener that allows to be kept fixed at a defined height and wherein said fastener encircles the shaft for this purpose; the lower part of said shaft is inserted into a first bearing and at its upper part is attached to a second bearing, allowing the free rotation of the shaft according to the impulse mechanically provided by the user, and wherein said platforms also rest on their periphery on supports comprising fixed bearings; one more bearing is integrated into the interior of the platform in the section where the platform has contact with the cylindrical fastener. The referred utility model patent has advantages and resolves the problems mentioned in the US patent, since the access of the objects deposited at the front of the platform is not impeded and when presenting the possibility of turning them; when it is desired to access to an object in the rear section, simply rotate the platform to place the objects in front and change the objects from the front to the rear. However still operating in this manner, the aforesaid invention has the drawback of having a central shaft which traverses the platforms by reducing the usable surface thereof, as well as obstructing the visibility at the access of the rear section of the container when necessary, optimal use of the entire container. Likewise, having an internal body which increases the heat transfer surface to the container interior, whereby further work of the equipment is required (either for cooling or for heating) to maintain the internal temperature thereof.

Another patent is U.S. Ser. No. 12/734,342 which displays a refrigerator with a multi-tray radial arrangement is formed by a radial arrangement from which a number of trays detach, depending on the requirements of the seller. The trays are shaped as circle sectors defined by two radii and the arc formed between both, and are fastened to a central shaft on which they slide to modify the height thereof depending on the size of the product to be stored on said tray. In this way, maximum use is made of the internal volume of the refrigerator, with each tray set at a different level depending on the product to be displayed therein. Also, the radial arrangement is connected to a rotating mechanism which causes homogenous cooling for all products displayed in the refrigerator. Ergonomically, the refrigerator provides a marked competitive advantage since the external design thereof affords more display in less physical space. The invention consists in a display refrigerator having a top frame, a bottom frame, a transparent body and a back body, and said frames keep inside the performance mechanisms of the display refrigerator; a multi-tray radial arrangement on which products are arranged and displayed is housed inside the transparent body and the back body; the radial arrangement constituted in said arrangement's ends by a top cover and a base; said top cover and base are joint by a central shaft running along the lengthwise shaft of said radial arrangement; the central shaft is encircled by a rail profile wherein each rail defines the circular sections that the display refrigerator will have; each tray has a tray support with sliding means within the rails in the rail profile; the foregoing allows for the selection of each tray's height before fixing the tray in place by any fixing means known; the system supplies cold air into the inside part of the refrigerator. A constant temperature is maintained inside the display refrigerator and in all the products therein. Finally, an automatic turn mechanism is located within the top frame and is coupled to the central shaft in order to make the radial arrangement turn.

Taking into account the foregoing statements and in order to eliminate all of these drawbacks, the present invention was developed; which as a first object of the same provides a system of rotating driven platforms with capacity to be applied to any type of enclosure; which is comprised of at least one platform operatively connected at its periphery to a power source which provides a radial impulse; to achieve this the platform has means of contact to the power source, which ensure a high transmission of the torque applied to the platform and wherein said platform also rests on at least two supports each located in the side walls of the enclosure, and comprising means for supporting and permitting free rotation of the platform, preferably cylinders with free rotation; said cylinders are disposed on one of their sides to the side walls of the enclosure and may have removable retention means. In one variant of the invention, the supports are comprised of elongate prismatic bodies which are attached to the side walls of the enclosure, and may also have removable means for joining said wall; said prismatic bodies include a cavity where are located free-rotation cylinders that support and serve as the basis for the platforms. The aforementioned system may also have means for controlling the driving power applied to the system, allowing to regulate or even stop the supply of the same in order to facilitate manipulation of the objects stored on the platforms.

It is a second object of the present invention to provide a static shelf arrangement where the shelf structure is formed first by a base with a perimeter defined by two perpendicular straight lines connected to each other and connected at their ends by a concave semicircular line, and complementarily the shelf has adhered a wall that circulates all the periphery of the base, generating the cavity to the interior of the shelf that avoids any type of spill; by the outside on one of the straight sides of the shelf there are removable means which allow it to be attached to mounting means present in the walls of the enclosure in a position which when mounting the shelves, the semicircular section of its wall positions towards the center of the platform coinciding vertically with the perimeter of the platform, thus achieving a concentric orientation of the shelves and also attending to a variable mounting height, such that the distance between the upper section of the shelf and the lower section of the platform is at least the average height of the articles to be stored within the container.

Because the shelves do not include moving parts, they are positioned concentrically around the platforms and their semicircular wall coincides vertically with the perimeter of the platforms, the arrangement remains static until the user who wants to manually remove some of the shelves, manages to take advantage of the internal space of the enclosure that is not occupied by the cylindrical volume of the platforms system; functioning as the passive mechanism of security, support and balance for objects stored in the platform, since the wall of the shelves coincide with the perimeter of the platform, in case any of the stored objects suffer from an imbalance, the shelf will act as a barrier that will prevent the object from falling.

Once the system described above has been implemented, access to the objects that are deposited in any region of the surface thereof is performed freely and unimpeded, since the platforms are rotating; thereby overcoming any problems related to obstruction of the access of the stored objects themselves, and allowing disabled persons a different way of accessing objects at the rear of the enclosure, particularly when new objects are introduced into it. In the same way, since the platforms are mobilized through a pulse applied in the periphery of the platforms, it is possible to implement platforms with continuous flat surfaces, substantially simplifying their shape, facilitating their construction and increasing the usable surface of the platform, increasing the storage capacity of the enclosure. The configuration of continuous platforms in turn allows both physical and visual access to the entire internal space of the enclosure, allowing the user to quickly identify the desired object, having the possibility to access it without obstructions or even wait for it to be positioned at the front of the enclosure to have a totally free and effortless access to the object in question; situation which is not possible in the various devices with motorized platforms attached to a pivot shaft, since that shaft obstructs both visual and physical access to the inner part of the enclosure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The characteristic details of this novel rotary platforms system for household appliances are clearly shown in the following description and in the accompanying figures, as well as a description of where the same reference signs are followed to indicate the parts and figures shown.

NOTE: Because the rotary platforms system for household appliances can be recessed into various household appliances, the present description is continued on the basis of a refrigerator, a purely illustrative, but non-limiting, example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator with the rotary platforms system for household appliances;

FIG. 2 is a conventional perspective view of the refrigerator with the rotary platforms system for household appliances;

FIG. 3 is a conventional perspective view of one of the platforms used by the rotary platforms system for household appliances;

FIG. 4 is a conventional perspective view of at least two recessed platforms in a refrigerator having the rotary platforms system for household appliances;

FIG. 5 is a conventional close-up and cross-sectional perspective view of a platform embedded in the refrigerator, approaching the turning mechanism and employing the rotary platforms system for household appliances.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The rotary platforms system for household appliances comprises a shaft 1 which is fixed in the rear inner wall of a conventional container A (preferably prismatic) in said shaft 1 is at least one notch 2 where at least one bearing element 3, in said notches 2 there is introduced into each of them a circular platform 4, with edges 5 which lock the platform 4 in the bearing 3 and serve as a barrier to prevent spills of liquids which could be present on the platform 4; on the side walls of the container in accordance with the height of each platform, in each of them is a support 6 with a conventional bearing 7 where the platform 4 is seated, which when rotated allows the objects placed on it to be stabilized, and arranged in such a way that the platforms 4 coincide vertically concentrically; when the user places some objects on the platform 4 it can rotate in such a way that the placed object is transported to the part closest to the shaft 1, in the walls of the container A there are in each one of the corners a projection 8 which are at different heights than the platforms 4, preferably in the middle of the length that separates them, between each two of them; first and foremost the projections 8 serve as shelves for objects to be placed by the corners of the container A as they are flat, but the two rear projections 8 a and 8 b form a semicircle which coincides with the dimensions of the platforms 4 and serves as a guide for the objects rotating in them, in such a way as to prevent said objects from falling or losing their vertical position to the rotating movement of the platforms 4; the two above projections only serve as front guides as they have the curved shape of the platform 4 but are interrupted in the part closest to the access door to the container A, in order to allow the user to remove the objects that he wishes;

A first variant at one end of the shaft 1, a conventional motor 9 is coupled to impart rotation to the shaft 1 which is toothed at least at the height of each platform and, on each platform 4 the edges 5 are toothed to form a rack 10 which performs the rotation of the platform 4, when the motor rotates the shaft 1;

A second variant is that the racks 10 of the platforms 4 make contact with a pinion 11, fixed on the projection of the shaft 1 and in turn, said pinion 11 makes contact with the shaft 1 which is toothed and where the pinion 11 is conventionally damped;

The side supports 6 having a bearing, preferably conventional ball bearings, which can be changed by cylinders 12 mounted on conventional shafts or pivots where the platforms 4 rest;

The lateral supports 6 instead of rolling bearings may be replaced by channels 13 serving as conventional guides through which a lower peripheral notch of the platform 4 is passed;

All systems previously described may have retention means (eg, hooks, locks, notches, protrusions, etc.) to make them removable;

The platforms 4 when passing through the walls of the container A may have conventional mechanisms for adjusting the heights of the platforms 4;

The side supports 6 may have the adjustment mechanisms of the platforms 4 instead of the platforms having them;

The systems described above, may have mechanisms to regulate the energy that is provided to the shaft 1 manual, automatic or hybrid.

The systems described above may have mechanisms to regulate the energy provided to the shaft 1, it may come from a logical processing unit that manipulates that one, either by means of an application housed therein, or by a laser beam or By remote connection.

Having sufficiently described my invention, what I consider as a novelty and therefore claim of my exclusive property is contained in the following claims: 

What is claimed is:
 1. A system of rotating platforms of household appliances comprising: a rotation shaft which is fixed in a rear inner wall of a container; at least one notch located on said rotation shaft; a bearing housed in each one of the at least one notch; a circular platform located on each one of the at least one notch, the circular platform including edges that lock the platform in the bearing and serve as a barrier to avoid spills of liquids that could be present in the platform; a support located on lateral walls of the container, each support including a conventional bearing, when the circular platform rotates, the conventional bearing allows objects on the platform to be stabilized; at least one projection located on the lateral walls of the container, the at least one projection are located at different heights than the platforms; at first rear projection and a second rear projection, the first and second rear projections have shape of a semicircle which coincides with a circular shape of the circular platforms and serves as a guide for the objects that rotate; wherein all of the circular platforms converge vertically concentrically; and wherein when an user places the objects on the circular platform, each circular platform rotates the object is transported to a section of the circular platform closest to the shaft.
 2. The system according to claim 1, wherein at one end of the shaft a conventional motor is coupled to impart a rotation to the shaft which is toothed at least at the height of each platform, in each platform, the edges are toothed to form a rack which makes the turn of the platform, when the motor rotates the shaft.
 3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the racks of the platforms make contact with a pinion fixed to the projection of the shaft and in turn, said pinion makes contact with the shaft which it is toothed and where the pinion is conventionally damped.
 4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the conventional ball bearings are replaced by rollers mounted on the shaft or conventional pivots.
 5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the supports are replaced by channels serving as conventional guides through which a lower peripheral notch of the platform.
 6. The system according to claim 1, further including a retention device selected from the group consisting of hooks, locks, notches, and projections.
 7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the platforms passing through the walls of the container includes an adjusting mechanisms to adjust the heights of the platforms.
 8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the lateral supports includes an adjustment mechanism.
 9. The system according to claim 1, further including a manual, an automatic or a hybrid mechanisms for regulating the energy supplied to the shaft.
 10. The system according to claim 1, further including a mechanism for regulating the energy being supplied to the shaft, the mechanism for regulating the energy includes a logic processing unit to manipulate the shaft. 